Showing posts with label Philately. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Philately. Show all posts

Sunday, November 26, 2017

Can Philatelists help India Post plan for 2015-2022? (Archived)

Update (21 Jan 2018): This post has outlived its utility and I'm planning to move to a new version soon. I'll archive this one and create a similar post with the remainder of the proposed stamp subjects and add whatever I learn from 2018 onward. Happy collecting.

Click here for the new version of this post.

Update on 26 Nov 2017
Update on 29 Oct 2017
Update on 10 Sep 2017
Updates on 01 Jul 2017
Updates on 28 May 2017
Updates on 01 April 2017
Updates on 23 Dec 2016
Updates on 03 Dec 2016
Updates on 26 Nov 2016
Updates on 17 Nov 2016
Updates on 10 Sep 2016
Updates on 20 Aug 2016 (Pink font)
Updates on 06 Aug 2016 (Red font)
Updates on 16 Jul 2016 (Purple font)
Updates on 15 May 2016 (Green font)
Updates on 16 Mar 2016 (Orange font)
Updates on 14 Feb 2016 (Blue font) 


Update (10 Sep 2016): A sub-section has been added toward the end of this post to list all the stamps that eventually get released from the proposals listed below. A few minor updates to some stamp subjects have been added as well. Appreciate the feedback and comments from all the readers. Keep'em coming.

Update (06 Aug 2016): Just re-organized this post while keeping all the information unchanged. Dates and colors indicated below will allow easy navigation.  Black font was the original post and additions or updates are in different colors and each color represents a specific date. Post a comment if there's a question. Enjoy.

There are numerous stamp issues that were put out by India Post for release in a particular year, but have not yet been released. Since the subjects were shared with the public, I am assuming these issues were approved for release. Many of these morphed into different stamp subjects. There could be various views about the list below, but one can be objective about it to help increase accountability and transparency in the process of selecting and issuing stamps.

I will try provide perspective to some of the stamp subjects hoping that these stamp releases languishing in Dak Bhawan (India Post HQ) will see the light of day. The stamp for Mumbai Stock Exchange was to commemorate 125 years of the stock exchange. Was this pulled out because it could be seen as an anti-poor move? Other issues for 2001 should be brought back, redesigned and released. Especially, the Jataka Tales and Hitopadesha stamps. The Panchatantra Stories stamps released in 2001 were quite popular and I remember hearing from our philatelic bureau those stamps being the highest seller for 2001. The Jataka Tales and Hitopadesha stamps can be released in two sets and complete a Folktales of India series (comprising of all these three folktales).

Joint issues were planned with Oman (2005) and Peru (2013), but were never released. I believe the issue with the Peru joint issue was that Peru released their stamp in March and India Post was not ready with its version. Although planned to celebrate 50 years of diplomatic relations, the joint issue with Oman was also not released as planned.

SAARC could have had two stamp issues - one for 20 years celebration in 2005 and the other one for South Asian Postal Union. SAARC has had a troubled history with little progress made on the ground. It would not be surprising if the Charter Day issue was abandoned due to political reasons. The SAPU stamp was overcast with the Wild Flowers of India issue during the APPU Congress in New Delhi (2013). In the past some SAARC stamps had good themes and designs - Year of Youth (1995), Year of Shelter (1991), 10 year celebrations (1996). Planning to release the pending issues will add to the new vigor with neighborly relations.

Pramathesh Barua was part of the Legendary Filmmakers series planned for release in 2006. Neither was this series started, not was a stamp released on Barua. Instead, stamps on  most other filmmakers were released individually (A. V. Meiyappan, Bimal Roy, Mehboob Khan, Ritwik Ghatak, L. V. Prasad).

On the other hand, the Himalayan Lakes, Landmark Bridges and Horses of India series were put in place, but some of the originally included subjects were not released. It would be ideal if these series can be continued with newer additions along with the ones that were intended for release but not included in the first issuance. A similar issue existed with stamps issues under the Festivals of India and Textiles of India stamp series. Honest opinion for Textiles stamps - Tat and Chanderi textiles were dropped to include Kalamkari (Andhra; Panbaka Lakshmi was MoS Textiles in 2009) and Apa Tani textiles (Arunachal; attempt to include North-East India).

A large set of stamp subjects (Calendar Stamps) were publicized in 2009 in the short lived Phila Post magazine. None, make note, none of these stamps have been released so far. Like the India Post-PCI collaboration on the magazine, PAC's idea of Calendar Stamps did not take off. The stamp subjects were terrific and would have done yeomen service to spread Indian culture across the world, but sadly nothing was achieved.

This post is getting quite long. I will rest my case here. This list should be used for furthering discussions with India Post and Shri Ravi Shankar Prasad (MoCIT) about stamp issues and recommendations for future releases. These stamp subjects alone should provide enough material for the next few years, leading up to the 75th Year of India's Independence (Amrut Mahotsav in 2022).

Stamp Issues Approved, but Not Released
2001
Set of 4 stamps on Greetings
Set of 4 stamps on Dances of India
Set of 4 stamps on Hitopadesha and Jataka Tales (Approved for release in 2017)

2005
India-Oman Joint Issue
SAARC Charter Day

2006
Himalayan Lakes – Loktak, Suraj Tal, Naini Tal
Landmark Bridges – Coronation Bridge, Kandrour Bridge, Laxman Jhula, Godavari Bridge
Pramathesh Barua

2007
Battaqh Ali Ansari

2008
Festivals of India – Kulu Dussehra
Infantry Soldier – Year of Infantry
Jammu & Kashmir Light Regiment
Maulana Atikur Rehman Alvi
Mahanamrata Brahmachari
Textiles of India – Tat, Chanderi, Ikat, Paithani, Maheshwari, Jamdani, Kota, Sambalpuri, Angami Weaves

2009
Architectural Splendor – Ujjayanta Palace, Patwon ki Haveli, Mattancherry Palace
Buddha Jayanti
Caves (Tracing Civilizations) – Bhimbetka, Barabar, Udaigiri, Nagarjuna
Children’s Fables – Vikram & Betal, Mogli, Tenali Rama, Birbal
Hill Stations (Colonial Heritage) – Gulmarg, Darjeeling, Ooty, Shimla
Endangered Species – Ganges River Dolphin, Nilgiri Tahr, Lion Tailed Macaque, Himalayan Musk Deer
Greetings – Christmas, New Year
Horses of India – Spiti and Kati
House Boats – Kerala, Kashmir
National Gallery of Modern Art
Seasons of India
Shakti Temples – Kalighat, Meenakshi, Vaishno Devi, Kamakhya (Approved for release in 2017)
Unique Villages of India – Toda, Kutch
UN Convention on the Rights for Persons with Disabilities

2012
Asiatic Black Bear and other wild animals (Set of 4 stamps)
Boats of India (Set of 4 stamps)
Flowers of India (Set of 2 stamps)
Government College, Ajmer
Railway Bridges of India (Set of 4 stamps)
Traditional Embroideries of India - Chikankari, Kutchi, Kashmiri, Phulkari, Kantha (Approved for release in 2017)
Tribal Dwellings (Set of 4 stamps)

2013
Dr. Nilratan Sircar
India-Peru Joint Issue
South Asian Postal Union

2014
Jyoti Basu (Uncertain for issuance)
Machali, The Tigress

2015
Bhupesh Gupta (Likely to be released in 2016) (Uncertain for issuance)
D. Devaraj Urs (Likely to be released in 2016) (Uncertain for issuance)

The following subjects should be/are being considered for release in the next few years as well:
2016
Balasaheb Deoras
Banda Singh Bahadur
Bishop Cotton School, Bengaluru
Delhi High Court - Golden Jubilee
Eknath Ranade
Gaurishankar Govardhan Joshi 'Dhumketu' (Approved for release in 2017)
International Year of Pulses
St. Mary's School, Pune
St. Mary’s Convent Inter College, Allahabad

2017
70 Years of Independence
100 Years of Kheda Movement
100 Years of Sabarmati Ashram
200 Years of Paika Rebellion
Amritlal Nagar
Auroville (Golden Jubilee)
Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute
Bombay Scottish School, Mumbai
FIFA U-17 World Cup 2017
Hindu School, Kolkata
India-Armenia: Joint Issue (Approved for release in 2017)
India-UN Joint Issue: International Day of Yoga
Laxmanrao Inamdar
Lions International Centenary
Presidency University, Kolkata
Queen Heo Hwang-ok (Korean queen from Ayodhya)
Swami Abhedananda
Patna University
Air Force Marshal Arjan Singh
Gir Wildlife Sanctuary
Dayalbagh

2018
Bhairon Singh Shekhawat
Rajkumar School, Rajkot
Ravenshaw University, Cuttack (150 Years) - MyStamp
Osmania University, Hyderabard (100 Years) - MyStamp
Sikander Bakht
Nelson Mandela
Dakshin Bharat Hindi Prachar Sabha
Srimant Sankardev
Vinda Karandikar
50 Years of Commercial Nuclear Power - Tarapur
Maharshi Mahesh Yogi
Bose Institute
Ramamand Sagar
Chandrakant Patel
B. Nagi Reddi
Oliver Reginald Tambo
Maniram Dewan
The Yoga Institute, Mumbai (100 Years)
Jyotirlinga Temples
The Maihar Band (100 Years)
Bhagvadgita
ISRO - Golden Jubilee

2019
150th Birth Anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi
CISF - Central Industrial Security Force
High Court of Punjab & Haryana Centenary
Sherwood College, Nainital
St. Aloysius Senior Secondary School, Jabalpur
Amrita Pritam
Maharani Gayatri Devi
Guru Nanak Dev - 550th Parkash Utsav
International Film Festival of India (Golden Jubilee)

2020
Modern School, New Delhi
ASSOCHAM
36th International Geological Congress
Pandurang Shastri Athavle
Sheikh Mujibur Rahman

2021
India-Bangladesh: Joint Issue (50 & 75 Years of Independence)
75 Years of India's Independence


BetterPhilately Wish List
B. D. Jatti
Balasaheb Thackarey
Balasheb Deoras
Chinmayananda Saraswati (1916-1993)
Dr. Muthulakshmi Reddy
Eknath Ranade
Gopal Swarup Pathak
I. K. Gujral
J. Jayalalithaa
K. R. Narayanan
Khushabhau Thakre (1922-2003)
Mohammad Hidayatullah
N. Sanjeeva Reddy
P. V. Narasimha Rao
Shivmangal Singh Suman
Siyaram Sharan Gupt
V. P. Singh

Stamps Released, Eventually
2001 - Mumbai Stock Exchange (To be released in July 2016; released on 09 Jul 2016)
2012 - Indian Metal Crafts (Set of 2 stamps) (To be released in Aug 2016 as a set of 6 stamps, released on 26 Aug 2016)
2015 - Fire Services in India (Released on 14 Apr 2016)
2016 - Singers of India (To be release in 2016 as Legendary Singers of India) -  Issued 31 Dec 2016
2016 - Acharya Vimal Sagar (Approved for release in 2016) - Issued on 14 Dec 2016
2016 - Samrat Vikramaditya - Issued on 22 Dec 2016
2013 - Headgears of India - Issued on 10 Feb 2017
2013 - Means of Transport through the Ages - Issued on 25 Mar 2017
2017 - Montfort Anglo-Indian Higher Secondary School, Yercaud - MyStamp issued on 11 Feb 2017
2017 - 100 Years of Champaran Movement - Issued on 13 May 2017
2017 - Srimad Ramanujacharya (Approved for release in 2017) - Issued on 01 May 2017
2017 - Banaras Hindu University (Approved for release in 2017) Issued on 28 Jun 2017
2017 - Srimad Rajchandra (Approved for release in 2017) Issued on 29 Jun 2017
2017 - Survey of India (250 Years) Issued on 22 Jun 2017
2017 - Bhisham Sahni (Approved for release in 2017) Issued on 31 May 2017
2015 - Ramayana - Issued on 22 Sep 2017
2017 - Mathura Refinery - MyStamp on sale in Sep 2017
2017 - India-Russia: Joint Issue (Approved for release in 2017) - Issued on 26 Oct 2017
2016 - Nanaji Deshmukh - Issued on 11 Oct 2017
2008 - Maulana Mehmood Hassan (Released as Silk Letter Movement) - Issued in Jan 2013
2015 - Mahabharata (Approved for release in 2017) - Issued on 27 Nov 2017
2018 - Shirdi Sai Baba - Samadhi Centenary - Issued on 15 Dec 2017
2013 - Traditional Indian Handfans (Approved for release in 2017) - Issued on 30 Dec 2017
2012 - Step Wells of India – Maharaja Agrasen Baoli and others (Approved for release in 2017) - Issued on 29 Dec 2017
2009 - Rani ki Var (Issued on 29 Dec 2017 in Stepwells issue)

Saturday, July 16, 2016

Show Cachets & Cancels @ World Stamp Show 2016

United States Postal Service and India Post provided special cancels for each day of the World Stamp Show 2016 in New York. USPS cancels were used by American Philatelic Society to prepare official show covers. India Post on the other hand sold two covers with one special cancel for each day of the show.

India Post cancels and covers were either based on the official theme days or with themes of the stamps released by USPS. The official theme day was used for two of the eight days of the stamp show and cancels/covers for the remaining six days was based on the theme of the stamps released by USPS. The themes listed below were used by India Post (days where official theme day was not used are highlighted in blue). One additional generic cover and two cancels were also provided throughout the duration of the show. Each cover was priced at $5, with a pack of 18 covers at $90.

28 May 2016 - International Day of United Nations Peacekeepers (The World of Stamps Day)
29 May 2016 - Learning Never Ends Day
30 May 2016 - Honoring Etraordinary Heroism (Armed Forces Day)
31 May 2016 - View of Our Planets, Pluto Explored (Science Meets Stamps Day)
01 Jun 2016 - Classics Forever (U. S. Stamp Day)
02 Jun 2016 - National Parks (Beautiful Americas Day & United Nation Day)
03 Jun 2016 - Colorful Celebrations (Children of the World Day)
04 Jun 2016 - Topical Collecting Day
Special Cachets and Cancels from India Post.
USPS and APS on other hand provided a cachet and a cancel for all eight days of the show. Each of these were based on the official theme days, which are listed below. APS also produced a generic cover with Lady Liberty cachet. Each serviced cachet was priced at $3 and the generic cachet at $2, with the entire set of 9 totaling to $26.

28 May 2016 - The World of Stamps Day
29 May 2016 - Learning Never Ends Day
30 May 2016 - Armed Forces Day
31 May 2016 - Science Meets Stamps Day
01 Jun 2016 - U. S. Stamp Day
02 Jun 2016 - Beautiful Americas Day & United Nation Day
03 Jun 2016 -  Children of the World Day
04 Jun 2016 - Topical Collecting Day
Generic Cachet made by APS for NY2016 World Stamp Show.
Official Show Souvenirs made by APS -  Eight Theme Days, Eight Cachets and Cancels.

Sunday, April 3, 2016

Stamp a Trip to Jadughar

Indian Museum (also known as Jadughar in the bygone era) has been a repository of art, artifacts, sculpture and rarities for over 200 years. It celebrated its bicentennial in 2014 with celebrations throughout the year. A souvenir sheet of three postage stamps was released in February 2014 to commemorate the occasion. This stamp sheet was prepared with images of masks, paintings and sculptures from the museum's collection. Another stamp was released as part of the Museums of India stamp set in July 1978. This stamp (see image below) showed a 2nd century BC. sculpture from Besnagar, Vidisha in Madhya Pradesh. A banyan tree, considered a wish-fulfilling one, is surrounded by a fence. Above the fence a lotus, a conch shell and vase with coins are depicted. This sculpture, believed to have been a part of a pillar is now placed at the main entrance of the Indian Museum.

During a visit to the museum in 2015, it was noticed that most of the galleries were either closed or were under renovation. Even though only about 20% of the museum was accessible, some images are from that trip to the museum. One big change that was noticeable was the removal of the fountain in the central portico of the museum's iconic building. Now this open space is used for staged events. See in the image below (first row), last two images show the current state and an old image with the fountain and a four directional path leading to it. Laid in three rows below are images of the objects used to design the recent stamp souvenir sheet. It provides a decent insight into the collection of this museum. That said, in its current state, the museum is best viewed virtually. All galleries and collections must be spruced up and opened at the earliest for visitors to enjoy a trip in history.

Artifacts from Indian Museum, Kolkata used to design the stamp Souvenir Sheet
First row (left to right): Sculpture (2nd BCE) from a railing leading to a gateway in Bharhut Gallery, main building without the fountain (current state) and main building with fountain (old image)

Second row (left to right): Papier mache Ganesha mask (20th c.), Bamboo-clay-cloth mask of Aristhasura (21st c.) used for Satriya Dance in Assam, Bamboo-clay-cloth mask of Baghasura (21st c.) used for Satriya Dance in Assam, Wooden mask of Kali (20th c.) used for Kali Nach in Malda and Papier mache-cloth-clay-tinsel Durga mask (21st c.) by Kanchan Sutradhar used for Chhau Dance in Purulia

Third row (left to right): Turkey cock by Ustad Mansur (1612 AD) using Gouache on paper, Buddha sculpture in Bhumisparsa Mudra (11th c.) from Chittagong in Bangladesh, Siva the archer (19th c.) in Kangra Pahari style using Gouache on paper and Kalpasutra (17th c.) Jainism painting in Western Indian style using Gouache on paper
Souvenir Sheet of Stamps released in 2014 to celebrate the bicentennial of Indian Museum, Kolkata
Design: Sankha Samanta
The image on the left of the stamp sheet is a 10-11th c. sandstone sculpture from Khajuraho (Madhya Pradesh) showing a mother with three children, one in her arms and two standing on both sides. Images for this sculpture and another painting (next to the masks in the stamp sheet) could not be obtained for sharing here.
A stamp from 1978 Museums of India stamp set depicted Kalpavriksha, wish-fulfilling tree

Sunday, November 29, 2015

Moving from Builders of Modern India to the Makers of India

The last definitive stamp series in India, the tenth, was the Builders of Modern India released in 2008-2009. It included 13 stamps in 12 denominations. Definitive stamps, unlike commemorative / special stamps are made available at post office for common use and are printed regularly.
Builders of Modern India
The Tenth Definitive Stamp Series

Print runs for definitive stamps are not fixed whereas commemorative stamps, as the name suggests are issued to commemorate special events, institutions or personalities of national and international importance, art and culture as well as social themes and are printed in fixed quantities.

The Builders of Modern India stamp series depicts five political leaders, two physicists, two cultural icons, one social reformer, one social religious leader and one industrialist. As a broad stroke and on surface it appears to be a decent selection for a recently independent country. But given the diversity of India, the list may not have been completely representative of the Indian society. 

Glaring omissions include political leaders with alternative view points (for e.g. Jayaprakash Narayan or Syama Prasad Mookerjee), a representative of North-East India, a sports personality (maybe Dhyan Chand) and a famous writer or poet. One should have to look no farther than Bharat Ratna awardees to make this a complete set.

Below is a tabulated version of the tenth definitive stamp series that provides a background for each personality honored on these stamps. It is ironical that three of the political leaders (highlighted in blue) belong to the same family, the Nehru-Gandhi family. These three stamps were released first, and together, even before Mahatma Gandhi's stamp that was released three months later.

Change of political leadership in India has allowed a review of this stamp series. The first change was to stop printing of the Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi stamps in July-August 2015. This resulted in some agitation in the opposition political parties, but facts appear to support a case for increasing representation of other leaders as well. The new political dispensation has decided to initiate a new definitive stamp series, Makers of India and its first stamp honoring Deendayal Upadhyaya (Rs 5) was released in November 2015. More on the new stamp series in a later blog post.

Builders of Modern India
Date
Issue Description
Contribution to Modern India
Denomination
01 December 2008
Jawaharlal Nehru
First Prime Minister
25 Paise
11 May 2009
E. V. Ramasami
Self Respect Movement
Social Reformer
50 Paise
01 March 2009
Mahatma Gandhi
Indian Independence
Re 1
01 March 2009
Dr. B. R. Ambedkar
Indian Constitution
Modern Buddhist Movement
Rs 2
01 March 2009
Satyajit Ray
Filmmaking
Rs 3
01 March 2009
Homi Jahangir Bhabha
Nuclear Physics
Tata Institute of Fundamental Research
Rs 4
01 December 2008
Indira Gandhi
Third Prime Minister
First Female Prime Minister
Rs 5
01 December 2008
Rajiv Gandhi
Sixth Prime Minister
Youngest Prime Minister
Rs 5
11 May 2009
C. V. Raman
Physics
Raman Scattering
Raman Effect
Rs 10
01 March 2009
J. R. D. Tata
Industrialization & Philanthropy
Tata Group
Rs 15
01 March 2009
Mother Teresa
Catholic Religious Sister
Missionaries of Charity
Rs 20
11 May 2009
Rukmini Devi Arundale
Classical Dance
Kalakshetra (Chennai)
Rs 50
Special Definitive
02 October 2009
Mahatma Gandhi
& Nonviolence
Indian Independence
Use of Nonviolence
Rs 25
                         Colors denote the release date.

Sunday, November 22, 2015

Paid News? An Analysis on Indian Media from 2005 to 2013

Although, no political allegiances are declared and no biases for political ideologies made known to the customers, Indian news media, both print and television are considered 'independent'. Readers most likely discover the owners' political leanings through the course of their lifetimes and have no control over the outcomes. Such is also the case with postage stamp releases by India Post in the last decade or so. Among the 20 most read newspapers in India, about half of them have had stamps released for their 'achievements' in journalism. This in itself appears to be quite a feat! Shown below are 16 postage stamps that have direct association with Indian newspapers and were released between 2005 and 2013.

Two of these newspapers, The Times of India and Malayala Manorama have also managed to get multiple stamps released for their organizations. A 'golden' stamp was released in 1988 to commemorate 150 years of The Times of India. It seemed appropriate to celebrate this milestone for a widely read newspaper, but to commemorate the same newspaper 25 years later - especially when it's publishing standards have arguably been deteriorating (some even calling it journalism that sells) - is questionable. Malayala Manorama has been the most fortunate of the lot. In the last 25 years, this newspaper has been obliged with three Indian postage stamps. The first instance appeared well deserved, when the newspaper achieved its centenary in 1988. There were two other instances when K. M. Mathew, Manorama's Editor-in-Chief was honored in 2011 and its 125 years celebration in 2013. Even if one were to consider K. M. Mathew for this honor, it would have been best to commemorate his birth centenary in 2017. 

These recent stamp issues glaringly flout the stamp issuance guidelines and appear to be a result of haphazard decision-making that provides discretionary powers to the government minister and officials. Stamp collectors and the common man deserve to know more about the process and final selections with regard to the stamp issue programs. Increased transparency, reliable research for subject development and a stamp advisory committee with more powers will go a long way to prevent this from recurrence. 
Postage stamps issues for magazines, newspapers and personalities associated with news media. The legend below tabulates the stamp issues and their associations with various newspapers.
#
Issue Description
Associated Newspaper, Etc.
Year
1
Puran Chandra Gupta
Dainik Jagaran
2013
2
Dr. Krishna Kumar Birla
Hindustan Times
2009
3
Jawaharlal Darda
Lokmat
2005
4
T. V. Ramasubbaiyer
Dinamalar
2008
5
Durga Prasad Chaudhary
Dainik Navjyoti
2012
6
Lala Jagat Narain
Punjab Kesari
2013
7
G. G. Jadhav
Pudhari
2009
8
Karpoor Chandra Kulish
Rajasthan Patrika
2012
9
Ramgopal Maheshwari
Central Chronicle-Nav Bharat
2012
10
The Tribune
The Tribune
2006
11
Doot
Gujarati Catholic Monthly
2011
12
Chitralekha / Vaju Kotak
Gujarati Weekly
2011
13
K. M. Mathew
Malayala Manorama
2011
14
Malayala Manorama
Malayala Manorama
2013
15
The Times of India
The Times of India
2013
16
Dineshnandini Dalmia*
The Times of India
2009
*Hindi author, but also married to Ram Krishna Dalmia, founder of the The Times Group that 
owns the The Times of India
The Times of India postage stamps. Sesquicentennial celebrations in 1988 (left) and 175 years celebrations in 2013 (right)
More fortunate, Malyala Manorama. Three stamps commemorating the newspaper and its journalism. Centenary year stamp (1988; left), K. M. Mathew, Editor-in-Chief (2011; middle) and 125 years celebrations in 2013 (right).